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What happens when a caterpillar can't form a cocoon?

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The end result is death. The caterpillar as a form has one mission and one alone: to gain enough weight through eating to go through several moults, then use its stored energy to complete the process of metamorphosis. read more

The caterpillar as a form has one mission and one alone: to gain enough weight through eating to go through several moults, then use its stored energy to complete the process of metamorphosis. read more

One day, the caterpillar stops eating, hangs upside down from a twig or leaf and spins itself a silky cocoon or molts into a shiny chrysalis. Within its protective casing, the caterpillar radically transforms its body, eventually emerging as a butterfly or moth. read more

Really, it depends on how badly the cocoon is damaged. Unlike a chrysalis, a cocoon is a completely separate, inanimate object to the thing inside (it is just a wrapping of silk, like a blanket). If there is a small tear, but the developing insect is not damaged, it most likely will be fine. If it is cut in half, well, obviously the insect will die. read more

First, the caterpillar digests itself, releasing enzymes to dissolve all of its tissues. If you were to cut open a cocoon or chrysalis at just the right time, caterpillar soup would ooze out. read more

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